During the summer, more than 10 experts with training in fisheries, hydrobiology, limnology and research diving will be at sea, as well as engineers specializing in marine research and measurements. The teams have worked throughout the project area, including both the northern extension and the southern part, which has already been mapped in previous years. Nature surveys are carried out as part of the statutory environmental impact assessment, the EIA procedure and as part of the land use planning process. These studies will enable an impact assessment of the planned offshore wind energy project on the natural environment.
— The nature studies, which complement existing data, provide an important information base for the planning and impact assessment of the project. The results will be reported in the EIA report, making them available to both the authorities and the public, says Heini Passoja, Project Manager at Metsähallitus.
This summer, the nature surveys for the power transmission line alternatives on mainland will include work on the birdlife, vegetation and habitats in the area, for example, capercaillies have been surveyed. Offshore surveys include monitoring spring and autumn migration of birds and carrying out a resting bird census. Fisheries surveys will also continue.
— The surveys have been carried out in selected areas along the transmission lines in the early morning, starting just before sunrise. This is the time when the activity and hearing of the birds is at its peak and when they are most easily detected. The bird surveyors thank the locals for their friendly approach to the surveys, says Senior Consultant Ella Kilpeläinen, AFRY
— We have been able to conduct our surveys in good weather. We have only had one thunderstorm, which forced us to interrupt the surveys. There are no islands in the project area, so the waves can easily get high. The wind has been brisk all the time, and it has been rocking us quite well! says fisheries researcher Sauli Vatanen, Kala- ja vesitutkimus Oy.
Source: Metsähallitus
